Oxford University Museum of Natural History, Oxford (must see)

The Oxford University Museum of Natural History (OUMNH) is a museum that showcases a wide range of natural history specimens belonging to the University of Oxford. It is situated on Parks Road in Oxford. The museum was established in 1850, although initially, it didn't have its own dedicated building. Instead, the natural history specimens were scattered across various museums throughout the city. The construction of the museum's current building was undertaken in 1860, thanks to the efforts of Sir Henry Acland, who commissioned its creation, and the architects Benjamin Woodward and Thomas Dean.

The architecture of the museum is characterized by a Neo-Gothic style, and it is quite visually appealing. The main hall of the museum features a glass roof supported by cast iron pillars, dividing the space into three distinct aisles. Along the ground and first floors, you can find secluded arcades adorned with stone columns. These columns are intricately decorated with various natural motifs, such as branches and leaves. Within the museum, numerous statues pay homage to prominent scientists, including Aristotle, Darwin, Bacon, and Linnaeus.

The museum's collections encompass a wide variety of natural history disciplines, including zoology, entomology, paleontology, geology, and mineralogy. Visitors can explore a remarkable assortment of specimens, from crabs collected by Charles Darwin to fossils, dinosaurs, and fascinating insects. Notably, the museum's prized possession is the head and claw of the last known Dodo bird.

Shortly after its opening, the museum gained notoriety as the location for the "Great Debate" between the Bishop of Oxford and Thomas Huxley, a botanist and avid supporter of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. This historic debate revolved around the clash between evolutionary science and religious beliefs, making it one of the most renowned debates in history.